


Time Out

by TheWalrusAndThePenguin



Category: MasterChef (TV) RPF, MasterChef Australia (TV) RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-31
Updated: 2012-07-31
Packaged: 2017-11-11 03:52:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/474212
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheWalrusAndThePenguin/pseuds/TheWalrusAndThePenguin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With Ben and Andy working together almost 24/7 to get their new restaurant up and running, tensions are high. Will the stress of getting everything ready for opening night push them over the edge?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Time Out

**Author's Note:**

> This one is pretty self explanatory unlike the last. I’d like to request one thing though: could you please not tweet this to any of the masterchef contestants without my permission? I’d really rather Ben or Andy not reading this. If you are at all connected to the Bendy clan please don’t show them. While this one doesn’t have smut, this is written by a fan for the fans (admittedly a group of rather fantastic fans). Oh, and I just finished this without really editing it so hope it’s not too sloppy!
> 
> Enjoy!

When Andy heard the door click behind him he threw himself against it, yelling out in frustration as he realised what had happened. Ben was quick to mimic him, slamming both hands into the freezing cold door of the industrial cool room.

“Okay, good one idiots! Now let us out!” he yelled.

“I will fire every one of you dickheads if you don’t let us out!” Andy screamed.

“You’re not coming out until you sort out your problems,” they heard Beau yell in reply. Andy grunted angrily and continued to pound against the door.

“Mate, that’s not going to work,” Ben said quietly, sitting down on a nearby box.

“I don’t see you doing anything!”

They’d been working together for three months and tensions were high. Andy had managed to secure an old restaurant in need of a renovation and had told Ben immediately. Within a week they’d found builders to start fixing the place up and had managed to get together a crew of young chefs and floor staff who needed training, but were eager to start as soon as possible. Beau, Emma, Kylie and Sam insisted on helping them get the restaurant up and going and Matt Preston even started a column in Masterchef magazine detailing the progress of “Destello”.

Three months in and they were finally allowed to start furnishing and getting the kitchen ready. When it came to the menu, though, bickering had quickly turned to full-blown shouting matches across the kitchen and the younger staff members were beginning to avoid the two owners completely. Kylie put the resentment between the boys down to being around each other for too long, from Masterchef to their trip to Mexico and now the restaurant. Sam thought it was just down to tiredness and Emma guessed it was stress. None of them had been sleeping much and spending the summer stuck in a stuffy kitchen with no aircon wasn’t ideal. And while the staff and their friends joked about them having “lovers-tiffs”, none of them took it seriously. Andy occasionally brought girls back to their share house and Ben claimed he was still in love with his ex-girlfriend.

Beau was fed up, though. He was fed up of being kept awake at night by Ben and Andy arguing loudly over menu plans and he was fed up of them not bothering to even be civil to each other. He knew that locking them in the cool room of their own restaurant wasn’t the most mature of actions, but he’d never been known for being mature.

“I’m going to kill him,” Andy muttered, pacing furiously in the enclosed space.

“See how well that works for you,” Ben snapped in reply.

“You want to fight again? Here? Now? God, I’m so fucking sick of you.”

“Good to know,” the taller man said quietly, the hurt evident on his face.

“I shouldn’t have said that.”

“No, it’s okay. It’s good to know how you feel.” Ben stood, walking to the door and leaning back against it. “I’ll pack my things tonight.”

“You’ll _what_?”

“I’ll pack tonight. I can’t do this anymore, Andy. We’re barely even friends anymore. Look at us.”

“After _everything_ , you’re just going to leave?”

“Well, what do you want me to do?” Ben yelled in frustration. “I thought this was what you wanted, but no you can barely even stand the sight of me. We can’t work together like this, we’re scaring the chefs, and our menu isn’t even finished. This isn’t working.”

“You can’t abandon this! This is our dream! You leaving was _never_ an option.”

“What are you going to do, tie me to the kitchen? You can’t force me to work with you.” Ben saw the flash of anger in Andy’s eyes before the shorter man gripped his shoulders and threw him against the wall behind.

“We were going to do this together!” In a second Ben had Andy pressed face-first into the door, his arms pressed against the small of his back.

“You forget that I was a teacher,” the taller man breathed, wrapping one hand around both of Andy’s wrists. “I know how to break up a fight.”

“Let go of me!” Andy hissed.

“Not if you’re going to continue this stupid little game you’ve got going on.” Ben loosened his grip marginally, but it was enough for Andy to swing around, his fist slamming into the older man’s jaw.

“Don’t treat me like one of your students!” he yelled, clenching his aching fist. Ben staggered back, one hand on his jaw and the other outstretched, keeping the other man at bay.

Ben narrowed his eyes in confusion, having clearly been caught off-guard. He’d never expect Andy, of all people to betray his trust like that. Andy knew he hated violence, he knew that he always avoided physical fights when he could. Ben licked his lips and tasted blood so lifted his hand to wipe over his split lip. At that point Andy looked exactly like one of his students when they’d just realised they’d done something wrong. He’d caught countless kids at this point, having just hurt someone else and frozen when the other person had started bleeding.

“Ben, I –” Andy began but was cut off as the door of the cool room was pulled open and light streamed into the small space. Their chefs, floor staff and Beau, Emma, Kylie and Sam were all standing in the doorway, clearly expecting a very different scene than the one before them.

“Good luck on your own, rook,” Ben whispered, pushing past the onlookers and storming out.

“Maybe locking them in a small room wasn’t the best idea,” one of the chefs piped up, only to get a harsh glare from Andy.

“Alright, show’s over,” Kylie said “Get on with it.” The staff began to move, but Andy stopped them.

“No, go home,” he interrupted. “All of you. It’s over.”

“Okay, day off then,” Kylie ordered. “See you all tomorrow.”

“Can you guys clean up here for the day? I need to get back to the house.” They all nodded in confirmation so Andy grabbed his jacket and sprinted for the door.

By the time he got home Ben was already gone. He’d clearly left in a hurry, his usually neat bedroom floor covered in clothes and chef whites. Andy sat on the edge of the bed, letting his head fall into his hands. It was like this that Kylie found him an hour later. She pulled him into a gentle hug and let him rest his head against her shoulder.

“What’s that?” he asked quietly, nodding to a piece of paper clenched in her hand.

“It was on the kitchen bench,” she said, handing it to him. “Andy, I’m sorry.”

He sighed sadly when he recognised Ben’s familiar scrawl.

_~~Andy,~~ _

_~~I need to~~ _ _I’ll be back tomorrow to pick up the rest of my stuff._

_Ben._

Andy closed his eyes, scrunching up the paper in his hands. “He can’t just leave.”

“Can you blame him?” Kylie asked softly.

“Not you too.”

“I’m not trying to be a bitch here, Andy, but you have to see it from his point of view. You’ve been at each other’s throats for weeks. Even when he agrees with you, you get angry with him because he’s not giving his own opinion. I shouldn’t have to be the one to tell you that he’s in love with you –”

“He’s not –”

“No, he is. You can’t say you don’t notice the way he looks at you. The way he retreats into his room for hours when you yell at him.”

“It’s not like that, we’re mates. We _were_ mates.”

“You still are. You need to either tell him that you feel the same way or at least acknowledge his feelings.”

“Kyle, you have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Just listen, okay? He’s been watching you bring home girls for weeks. Every night you bring someone home he sleeps on the couch so he can leave early the next morning without having to see you. Haven’t you noticed that he goes to the restaurant early every time? When we’re out in a group and girls come up to him he brushes them off, but watches you like a hawk. He says he’s still in love with his ex, but they broke up over six months ago and he hasn’t been with anyone since. Think about it, Ando.”

“He…can’t be.”

“Regardless of what you feel, you need to talk to him. He’s been going insane with jealousy and frustration that he can’t be with you which has been making you angry cause he’s angry. Don’t give up on this. This restaurant, this friendship means more than your pride.”

“What am I meant to say to him?”

“Do you want us to lock you guys in the cool room again and you can talk it out?” Kylie joked. Andy chuckled, resting his head back on her shoulder.

“How did this happen?” he whispered.

“What’d you mean? How’d you fall in love with your best mate?” she meant it as a joke but he just nodded. “Oh, Andy.”

“If he…doesn’t feel the same way and I ruin this by saying something…”

“Don’t worry, he does.”

“But…”

“You guys don’t have to have a relationship, you know that right? You’re ‘Bendy’! Just because that’s what everyone says doesn’t mean that’s what you have to do. If you both understand the feelings you have for each other it is possible for you to just be mates.”

“I don’t know how that would work.”

“It’s all about sex for you guys, isn’t it?” Andy chuckled before freezing.

“Shit, I’m in love with a bloke,” he muttered. “How the hell is that supposed to work?” Kylie couldn’t stop laughing and soon Andy joined in.

“Sleep on it,” she suggested. “He’s coming back tomorrow, so talk to him then.”

“Okay.”

-

Andy woke up at 6am and showered as quickly as he could before dressing and waiting in the kitchen for Ben to get there. When the others got up hours later he went about making breakfast to look like he wasn’t waiting. They didn’t question him and Beau didn’t even dare look him in the eye, still guilty about locking them in the cool room.

As they were leaving for the restaurant Kylie patted him on the back before giving him a sympathetic smile. “It’ll be okay,” she encouraged before following the rest of them out of the door.

Ben didn’t get there until 11am and in the meantime Andy was worrying himself sick. He’d taken to pacing the kitchen and when he heard a key in the lock of the front door he froze. Ben stepped through the door and didn’t look up until it was closed behind him. Andy slowly made his way down the hallway, stopping a few metres from his best mate.

“I didn’t think you’d be here,” Ben said quietly, but all Andy could focus on was the bruise on his right jaw.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered.

“It doesn’t matter now,” the taller man replied sadly.

“It does. It’ll always matter.”

“Look, Andy, I just want to get my stuff.” Ben tried to walk to his bedroom, but Andy grasped his arm.

“Can’t we talk?” Andy pleaded, hating how desperate his voice sounded.

“Come and talk while I pack, I’ve got a plane to catch.” Ben pushed past and walked to his bedroom. He began packing while Andy stood nervously in the doorway.

“I don’t want you to go,” the younger man found himself blurting out.

“Andy, I can’t stay,” Ben insisted, turning to face him.

“No, just listen to me. Hear me out, okay? I need you here, you’re my best mate and I can’t do this without you. I was talking to Kylie last night and I realised that I…well, the thing is, I…”

Ben looked up when he stopped talking. Andy was pacing now and shaking uncontrollably. “Andy, you’re shaking.”

“I know, I know. I don’t know why. I just need to get this out. I…have feelings for you. Like, different feelings that I have for my other mates. I don’t necessarily want to, you know, become a couple or whatever or get married or any of that, I just need you with me. I wasn’t joking when I said I can’t wait for the next part of our lives to start. I want you there, Benny, I need you with me. I’ve never felt like this before, this pull towards someone else and I’d say it’s love but I don’t really know, but I do know that I won’t be okay if you leave.”

Ben just stared at him, still clutching the pair of jeans he was holding. He opened his mouth to say something twice before looking away and frowning. “Benny, please say something.”

“I, I…I feel the same way, Ando,” Ben finally said. “As long as I’m with you it doesn’t matter what we are, what people define us as. Though, you probably shouldn’t punch me again. Violence against chefs, Australia says no!”

Andy snorted with laughter, chuckling as Ben pulled him into a close hug.

“I love you, mate,” Ben whispered against Andy’s hair.

“Love you too, Benny.”

In the weeks that followed the dynamic in their restaurant changed significantly. Andy and Ben soon fell back into their old rhythm in the kitchen and the staff even loosened up enough to begin calling them “Bendy”. Although “Bendy” weren’t officially together, or really anything other than best friends, there was definitely something different about their relationship. Andy was quick to rest a hand on Ben’s back when he was stressed and Ben often pulled the smaller man into a hug when he worried about the restaurant not being ready for their opening night.

Beau even caught Ben absentmindedly kiss Andy on the forehead as they passed each other in the share house kitchen one morning. While Andy flushed bright red and avoided Beau’s raised eyebrows, Ben just continued making breakfast, completely oblivious to everything going on around him.

By the time opening night came along, the fact that the restaurant was ready, the menu complete and everybody trained and ready to go shocked the entire staff team. Matt Preston organised one hundred A-listers to come along for the opening and Channel 10 were allowed access to film. The night went as smoothly as expected and following dessert, Matt insisted that all the chefs come out for a speech.

“I’d like to thank these boys and their staff for a wonderful evening,” he commented before continuing on about their hard work and how they managed to pull it together. Once he finished he indicated for Ben to say something.

“Well, I want to thank our wonderful staff,” Ben smiled. “And of course Beau, Kylie, Emma and Sam who have been an amazing help in setting this up. They’re welcome back anytime they want. And of course, my best mate Andy.” Ben wrapped an arm around Andy’s shoulders and pulled him close. “I don’t know what I’d do without you. Thanks for everything. Thanks for making me stay. Thanks for being everything to me.” Ben barely registered the surprise at his words as an interested hush overcame their guests.

“Bendy lives on!” Beau shouted happily, attempting to break the heavy silence. The guests cheersed, but nothing could shift Ben’s gaze from Andy and how intensely he was looking up at him.

“I love you,” Andy whispered so quietly that only Ben could hear.

“I love you too,” the taller man replied, leaning down to brush his lips gently over Andy’s. He didn’t even register the collective gasp from the onlookers in the room as he wrapped his arms tightly around the younger man’s waist and kissed him. He felt Andy tighten and he wasn’t sure if it was from embarrassment or surprise, but honestly he couldn’t care less. One of Andy’s hands came up to cup his face while the other tangled itself in Ben’s shirt, pulling him impossibly closer.

When the need to breathe became too much, Andy reluctantly pulled back and let his head fall forward onto Ben’s shoulder. He felt Ben chuckle and knew it was because of the roomful of people watching them. He stepped back, keeping one arm securely wrapped around Andy’s waist and pulled him back into the kitchen.

“Where’re we going?” Andy asked.

“Cool room,” Ben replied, grabbing Andy’s hand and half-dragging him away.

 

The End

 

Edit 1st August: 

The awkward moment when my fic became canon.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me here: http://thescienceofgallifrey.tumblr.com/ if you want Masterchef, Doctor Who, Sherlock & Beatles stuff on your dash. x


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